The Thunder released forward Colin Moberly Monday and finalized a trade with Marquette for forward Ryan Johnson.

Albert Lea traded away a draft pick for Johnson, a skilled forward who played for Blaine last season. Johnson scored 13 goals and had 24 assists for a team that made a state tournament appearance last season.

As for Moberly the team believed it wasn’t a good fit for him or the team.

“He’s a good kid,” assistant coach Brian Murphy said. “It’s better for him to go somewhere else because he’s an older kid.”

Moberly, a 1988 birth year, is in his final season at the junior level. He had one goal and one assist in five games for the Thunder. He had 12 penalty minutes in five games. He played for the Orangeville Crushers of the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League last season. He tallied 15 goals and 14 assists in 36 games.

“We wanted him to score some more points,” Murphy said.

The team decided to go younger with the addition of Johnson, a 1989 birth year. Johnson played two games with the Rangers and was playing behind a number of veteran forwards.

“We were in a situation where we had too many guys,” Marquette head coach Kenny Miller said. “They were looking for players and we have a lot of guys that do what Ryan Johnson does.”

Miller said Johnson is a skilled player and there wasn’t room for him in Marquette.

Johnson was at practice Tuesday with the Thunder and the team thinks he can help with the scoring. The Thunder has seven goals on the season.

“He’s a nice kid, hopefully can give us some offense,” Murphy said.

Murphy said the team had been looking to make a move since the NAHL Showcase. With the USHL making roster cuts the Thunder will continue to look to make a move. The team is still looking to add another defenseman.